Its not just W flags. On Friday night, | Forum

                                      ANAHEIM, Calif. Manuel Lanzini Jersey . -- The Los Angeles Angels and Cincinnati Reds dont know much about each other, playing head-to-head only nine times in their respective histories.And they havent played each other at all since 2013, when the lineups of each team looked very different than their current lineups.But the one thing both teams have in common is not something either team is too happy about: Both are in last place, playing out the season and doing a lot of evaluating for next season and beyond.The Angels, though 18 games under .500 and 20 1/2 games out in the American League West, enter the series playing well, having won four of their past five games, beating playoff contenders Toronto and Detroit during that stretch.Not so much for the Reds, 19 games under .500 and 27 games out in the National League Central, who have lost five of seven.The Reds, though, have Dan Straily starting on the mound coming in on a hot streak. Hes 6-0 in his last seven starts and hasnt lost a decision since July 8. He leads the Reds staff in victories (10), innings pitched (151 1/3) and strikeouts (123).A key pitch for Straily is his changeup, and he has been happy to share his secrets with his teammates. In particular, Straily recently was approached by teammate Brandon Finnegan for some help.It was the exact same problem I went through a couple of years ago back when I was in the minor leagues, Straily told mlb.com. Once he told me he was having problems cutting it, I just showed him what helped me stop cutting it and it worked for him. Its just how we hold it. We have the same grip; he was just holding it the same way I used to hold it in college.College balls, the seams allow it to do something different. The seams are smaller and when you throw it the way we threw it back in college, now its like a cutter, sometimes its down, sometimes it goes arm-side, theres no control with the movement, which is a good thing, except when nobody can catch it.The advice paid off when Finnegan struck out a career-high 12 Arizona Diamondback hitters in just six innings last Friday.Straily may have a few tricks up his sleeve against the Angels, at least, compared to what the Angels are used to seeing when facing him. Straily started seven games against the Angels while pitching for Oakland, but went just 1/3 with a 6.69 ERA.Matt Shoemaker will start for the Angels with a record (8-13) that wont strike fear into the Reds hitters. But Shoemaker has been far better than his record shows.Shoemaker has given up two earned runs or fewer in more than half of his starts (13 of 25), but earned the victory in just six of those 13 games.One of Shoemakers biggest problems this season has been a lack of run support. The Angels have scored at least four runs in only 11 of Shoemakers 25 starts. And early runs are even better.Its always good to have a lead, Shoemaker told MLB.com. Its always nice knowing, thats in the back of your mind, Hey weve got a two-run lead or whatever it is. The game plan is to attack the hitters, but then when you have the lead, same thing, attack the hitters, stay aggressive.With just over a month to play, about the only drama the Angels have is whether or not Mike Trout can win another MVP award. Trouts numbers make him a candidate -- .312 average, 24 homers, 82 RBI, 97 runs scored and a league-leading .432 on-base percentage.Surprisingly, though, Angels manager Mike Scioscia generally doesnt believe players from last-place teams deserve to be an MVP.Yes, Scioscia said when asked if the MVP should come from a contender. Unless somebody just separates themselves so much where you go my gosh, this guys 15 more home runs than the next guy, 30 more RBI than the next guy.But I definitely think there needs to be a value on how youve affected a teams performance. I think to be a contender says a lot about what a player brings to a team. ... When you play on a contender your production has more of an impact on that teams success. Authentic Soccer Argentina Jerseys . -- Peyton Manning will have all of his wide receivers available for the first time in a month when the Denver Broncos begin their playoff run Jan. Gonzalo Higuain Jersey . 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The Chicago Cubs are 10 Ws away from winning the World Series and ending the longest championship drought in sports.And with each win, the W will play a larger role.As the Cubs have gone back to their winning ways, the team has invested big in the 23rd letter of the alphabet, and Cubs fans feel like waving a flag with a W on it is now an essential part of fandom.The W might seem like a relatively new thing, but its actually as old as the ivy on Wrigley Fields outfield wall.William Wrigley Jr. had purchased a transportation company called Wilmington Transport, whose logo was a big W. In the early 40s, a flag appeared on the scoreboard with a W or an L to give Cubs fans who had not gone to the game an indication of the result that day at the park.The Cubs first trademarked the W for use on flags in 2006, but not getting out of the division series in the playoffs made it hard for the Cubs to push the W too hard. That all changed in 2015, when the Cubs established themselves as one of the best teams in baseball.In the summer, we took a look at what others were doing, said Alison Miller, the Cubs vice president of marketing. We really liked what the Kansas City Royals did with Take The Crown, and thought the Golden State Warriors phrase Strength in Numbers was also smart. But we also looked at our own assets and knew we had the W flag.In September of llast year, the Cubs filed for four trademarks to the W covering virtually every possible merchandising occasion. Cristian Ansaldi Jersey. In their run to the National League Championship Series, the city embraced the letter.This year, it has only grown.Our official partners have aligned themselves with it, Miller said. Dunkin Donuts has a W donut for sale, American Airlines has sponsored our W rally towels and blanketed OHare, and Advocate Health Care has made W onesies available to babies born in their hospitals in October.You can also now get a deep dish pizza from Giordanos with Parmesan arranged on top of the sauce in the shape of a W.That the W has been so embraced has been something Miller has enjoyed.We were playing the Cardinals, and I remember sitting at the game with my dad, and when we won, people started taking out their W flags and waving them, Miller said. This has become a marketers dream.Its not just W flags. On Friday night, at Game 1, the Cubs and their retail partner Levy, rolled out a full line of apparel available at Wrigley including shirts and sweatshirts.Theres no doubt the Cubs can sell plenty of Ws. But picking up the ones you cant buy, and can only earn on the field, will be more valuable in the long run. 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